Ugly Talk

Episode 14 - Learning from Stasis

Released: May 29, 2017

Stasis is a 2015 science fiction horror game developed and published by The Brotherhood, a South African studio comprised of the brothers Nicolas and Christopher Bischoff. In the year of its release, it was awarded Adventure Game of the Year by AdventureGamers.com

The plot of the game draws heavily from Event Horizon and Dead Space. It follows John Maracheck, a family man and school teacher who wakes up from cryostasis on an unknown and apparently abandoned vessel known as "The Groomlake. Injured, unarmed, and alone, he must search out and rescue his family and escape the dying vessel, all the while learning the horrifying secrets it holds.

Through the course of this episode, we discuss the story and design decisions of Stasis along with James and Kevin Colmar. We discuss what we think could have been improved, as well as design lessons to take away in our own writing.